User blog:Cfp3157/It Comes At Night Review: A Terrifyling Fresh and Inventive Thriller
It is so wonderful to become so genuinely terrified and frightened by a film. It Comes At Night ''replaces gimmicky monster horror and slasher gore to scale back and inspire true fear. Anchored by an outstanding cast and lifted heavily by a script that isn't afraid to trust its audience, the directorial debut of Trey Edwards Shults has cemented itself into the canon of horror history. Ferocious in execution and defiantly proud of itself, the film is a wonder to behold. The Cast Every member of this casts pulls their weight exceptionally well, to the point that no single performance stands out (in a good way). Carmen Ejogo is given the subtlest part, with much of her emotion and fear being portrayed through hushed whispers and frantic facial expressions- in essence, a true horror role. Riley Keough also does good work, with her young mother allowing herself to blend perfectly into the background. Even two small parts, David Pendleton and Griffith Robert Faulkner, shine bright, with the former inspiring true terror in his brief screentime and the latter proving a capable child performance. The film's true lead is Kelvin Harrison Jr., who does wonders as the teenage son Travis. His performance relies a lot on masking emotions, which Harrison does excellently. Acting powerfully alongside Joel Edgerton and Christopher Abbot is no small feat, but he does so and then some. Joel Edgerton delivers one of his most gripping and terrifying roles yet, with his Paul being a true, genuine craft that echoes great work in the genre. His performance is completely empathetic, while his fear and paranoia reaches out into screen. Christopher Abbott is a true star, balancing the line of enigmatic and trustful like a tightrope, never slipping. He inspires trust, distrust, and trust without blinking, creating a truly complex role. Score: 4.5 out of 5 The Script Penned by Shults himself, the script is a truly brazen project because it holds itself to a higher standard, trusts its audience, and warrants it. There are complex questions and discussions about trust, paranoia, survival, and family that don't force an answer and let audiences interpret it. For once, dream sequences are beautifully utilized to create contrast and it pays off in an outstanding manner. In a post-apocalyptic world, one family has recently had to kill an infected member of their family, while later that night meeting someone trying to break into their house. The stranger, Will, convinces Paul and his family to let his own family into their home. As the two families bond, trust soon gives away to security as events occur that puts them under friction. If there's one flaw with the screenplay, it's one significant plot mystery that remains significant story question. There are theories and implications as to what it could be, but the lack of definitive answers could be off-putting to certain viewers. However, the film should be applauded for the audacity to remain mysterious and let its viewers decide for themselves. Score: 4.5 out of 5 The Direction On a technical level, the film is a masterpiece of horror. Every shot, sound, and sight in the film inspires an overwhelming sense of dread that cannot help but unsettle the viewer. Shults as the director does an exceptional job pacing the film, with the tension rising and falling in perfect sync to ensure that the audience has no way to expect what occurs next. Drew Daniels has gifted the world with cinematography that the genre has not seen since its beginnings, with the darkness and complexity of the house where the film takes place being truly unsettling. The dark forests, the occasional flash of a light or lamp, and the infamous red door are all captured beautifully. This goes hand-in-hand with the editing by Matthew Hannam and Shults, which creates contrast from scene to scene that fatigues in the best way. Finally, the score is simply outstanding. The film sounds terrifying, Michael Omber ensures that every tick, creak, and click that forces viewers to stay on their toes. And this doesn't count the production value of the house that has been built for the film, purposefully obscured and never shown in full. The house itself creates a dissonance and forboding nature that can't help but be terrifying. Score: 5 out of 5 Final Verdict ''It Comes At Night is a unique and refreshing breathe of air in the horror genre. Nail-bitingly assembled on all fronts, the film comes across as intelligent, terrifying, and unsettling in all of the right ways. Not only is it a crowd-pleasing film of true frights, but it also asks questions about itself that must be praised. Everything about the film is audacious, and that's always a great thing to see. Category:Blog posts Category:2017 Reviews Category:Reviews